Trip Reports – 2013

The CBS trip April 20 and 21 had clear skies all day Saturday and Sunday afternoon, but windy and cold until about 2:00 each day. But even when warmer, there were very few butterflies. We had only 13 species on Saturday and 10 on Sunday! Scenery and great group of folks were the positives, along with a few Elk sightings on Sunday, about 40 birds, and 50 wildflowers. Gail Lankford

Six observers covered an approximately 2 mile route through Cypress Gardens (near Moncks Corner, SC) from 1:30–3:30 PM, It was clear and sunny , temp. mid-80s. There were many dragonflies. Butterflies observed were:

14 of us spent from about 10:00 AM to noon on the BMX trail to the recently replanted meadows near the Yadkin River. It started slowly and overcast but gradually the skies cleared somewhat. While fighting off the June butterfly “doldrums”, we almost managed as many species as participants!

On Saturday, 20 July, 14 of us dodged early overcast conditions and 3:30 thunderstorm to complete a much larger than expected count (considering being held in the late July). Over-all we had 40 species with 370 butterflies with no outstanding or unusual species except for an early arriving Painted Lady (Vanessa Cardui) and my favorite, the Tawny Emperor which has been scarce this year. There was a large outburst of Eastern Tiger Swallowtails (112), Silvery Checkerspots (53), Silver-spotted Skippers (47), and Sachem (29).

I would like to thank all the participants: Nita Colvin, Carl Ganser, Carol Gearhart, David Heavner, Marilyn McDonald (participant and compiler), Tom McKay, Jim Nottke, Max Nottke, Holly Redman, Lois Schneider, Shirley McCabe. Stan Gilliam, and Barbara Cullen. Marilyn did most of the heavy lifting on the compilations and we sent off the count to NABA yesterday.

Our annual NABA count, organized by Gail Lankford, was held this past Sunday. Weather was pretty good with Temps in the 80’s, mostly sunny with no rain. There was a breeze out of the north which was fine with the counters and didn’t seem to affect the leps.

Most of the count circle is in Buncombe county, but there is a small part that strays into Madison. The Madison numbers are given in brackets and included in the total. Most of the count effort was in the Sandy Mush Game lands which once again has proved to be a great area for wildlife.

12 people participated in this count. Many thanks to all concerned.

54 species and 2006 individuals were counted. I have a spreadsheet comparing this year to the previous three and can send this to anyone interested.

The Southern Lake Norman Count was held Sunday August 11. Nineteen counters in eight parties verified 56 species within the Count Circle. Here are the species numbers from that hot, humid day (71 F to 91 F).

Overnight rain and cloudy conditions made for a slow start to the 2013 Durham Count. However, seventeen intrepid butterfliers were undaunted and cumulatively found 4609 individual butterflies comprising 56 species, right around the 13 year average for this Count. Will Cook’s party found the best butterfly highlight of the day — a White M Hairstreak that posed for photos. This was only the 5th ever recorded for the Count. Another highlight included a Eufala Skipper, recorded on fewer than half of the counts and found by Tom Krakauer’s party. THe Harry LeGrand party won honors for the most species tallied (43), while Jeff Pippen’s party found the most individuals (1154), mostly because of all the skippers in the Duke Gardens!

The third ever Rockingham County butterfly count was held on 8/22/13 with clear skies and temperatures ranging from 75-87 degrees. Thirteen observers in three parties tallied a whopping 54 species and 3343 butterflies. Three butterflies topped over 200 individuals: Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 1101, Carolina Satyr 582 and Silver-spotted skipper with 271.

One species was new to the park area: Appalachian Brown along the Mayo River.

Misses were same as last year: Little Yellow, Red-banded Hairstreak, Painted Lady, Red Admiral and Common Sootywing.

Yesterday, Sunday, August 25, 2013, 5 of us participated in the Transylvania NABA Count. We had beautiful weather – 68 -79 degrees, mostly sunshine. We were just happy to be out enjoying the nice day. The constant rain must have had a significant impact on the butterfly population in Transylvania County. Here are the results:

I would like to thank Michelle Barg (birder turned lep enthusiast!), Nancy Cowal, Janie Owen, and Sue Perry for showing up to help count and just enjoy the beautiful day in the Pisgah National Forest with me. I’m sure we could have improved our numbers with a few more observers but we decided to strike while the iron was hot, so to speak, and take advantage of the a nice day to count. Who knows if the weather will stay this way for long.

We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day. It was sunny with highs in the low 80’s and very low humidity. There were gusts of wind at times. Dennis Forsythe was our trip leader. In attendance were Carl Ganser, Charlie Cameron, Gene Schepker, Lois Schneider, Bobbie McCutchen, Irvin Pitts and Dave and Marty Kastner. We began around 10:00 and butterflied until around 4:00. Dennis and Bobbie had to leave around 2:30 and missed seeing the Helicta Satyrs that Dennis thought were in the area we covered. He said that we were only the second group of people to have seen them in South Carolina since the 1990’s! What a great sighting!

Yesterday six of us* carried out the postponed Iredell County Count. Under skies that varied from mostly cloudy to mostly sunny and temps ranging from 72 to 86, we did roadsides, Allison Woods, and the Iredell Greenway. Our moods improved after lunch when we visited sunny open spots and the butterflies started hopping.

We found 747 adult butterflies of 42 species.

An uncommon find were two Checkered Whites, reported only once before in Iredell County in 2005 at about the same location we observed ours.

Yesterday (Sep. 1) we held the Croatan NF count, under typical weather conditions — hot, humid, and partly cloudy, but essentially no rain. Thus, the current weather won’t explain the somewhat poor numbers of species and individuals — things are down from previous years — in particular most brushfoots and smaller skippers. The unseasonably cold spring was certainly the culprit.

I’ve added in Bob Cavanaugh’s results, below, and will pay the count fee for him, as he put in considerable effort. Sorry about the mix-up about the locked gate, etc.

Total = 44 species. Note the absence of anglewings, ladies and Red Admiral, and Monarch; several of the scarce skippers (Berry’s, Reversed R-S) also could not be found. The best find of the day — a Pigmy Rattlesnake, see briefly in a dry ditch by half of the group, before it quickly slithered off into the brush. Thanks to John Fussell, Jack Fennell, Will Cook, Mai Anh Ngo, and Bob Cavanaugh for helping me with the count.

The 8th annual count started at the top of Pilot Mountain State Park (PMSP) to avoid the crowds later in the day, but there was thick cold, blowing fog at the summit. While waiting for the fog to burn off, our 14 observers* kicked up a few skippers and found many Silver Spotted Skipper caterpillars on bristly locust (Robinia hispida). Yielding to the persistent fog, we drove to 2000 ft lower elevation at the base of the mountain to the sunny field across from the park entrance. There we found many skippers and a few larger butterflies. The roadside across from the Denny Farm Trail head and the Denny Farm Trail itself yielded several more species. Parties covered the Horse Corral Trail and other areas of the River Section of PMSP, while a small party returned to the mountain summit to count in the sun (and had to wait in a line of cars waiting for a parking spot to open up). The final location was Horne Creek Farm. Of note;
– 14 observers was the most ever for the Surry count.
– 52 species was a new high for the count
– 944 adult butterflies was a new high for the count
– we set a new late date for Surry County for many species
– 400+ Carolina Satyr was very conservative

We all had a great time under excellent conditions, once we escaped the fog,

The Carolina Butterfly Society field trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway had an excellent turn out of 21 people on Saturday, 9/28/13. The weather was cloudier and cooler than the forecast had predicted, but despite that, we saw some butterflies. New comers in the group got to see a few higher elevation species that are uncommon or absent in other parts of our region. With congenial people and good butterflies in a beautiful location, it was a fun trip.

Our rendezvous point for the beginning of the trip was the Blue Ridge Music Center at milepost 213 just across the North Carolina state line in Virginia. We spent about 3 hours there exploring the meadows and roadsides. We had a picnic lunch adjacent to the wet meadow beside the Parkway before heading southwest into North Carolina.

From the music center, we explored the roadsides natural flower gardens and meadows all the way to the US 21 exit to Sparta. Although there seemed to be a lot of nectar sources, we had to work for the butterflies we found. Perhaps the cool overcast weather kept the butterflies under cover. Fortunately, there were several participants who were interested in native plants, and most folks enjoyed birding, so no one seemed bored.

Conspicuously absent from our final butterfly list were Pipevine Swallowtails, a species that often is abundant. Particularly disturbing was the near absence of Monarchs, however. We had chosen this weekend because it usually is near the peak of Monarch migration along the Parkway. In previous years on the last full weekend in September, we have seen hundreds. Monarchs have been scarce throughout our area all season. This year along the Parkway we saw only one adult, and despite searching patches of milkweed, only three caterpillars.

Below is our butterfly list for the day. It’s divided by state, showing butterflies in and near the Blue Ridge Music Center in Carroll County, VA, and along the Parkway in Alleghany County, NC